The Burgundy region, in France, hides many jewels, amongst which you will find the Vezelay Basilica. The charming Vezelay town and its former monastery are definitively worth a visit, especially for Romanesque architecture lovers & UNESCO World Heritage fans.
In this article, I will, as usual, show you many pictures of the place and will tell you a bit of its history and architecture.
However, it is the power of Sainthood that stroke me when visiting and studying the place. So let me tell you what I mean by this…
A touch of history
The Vezelay Basilica has been standing fiercely on top of the Vezelay hill for centuries. Hills were always a good choice for settlements as they offered clear views of their surroundings and were therefore, a bit easier, to defend from attackers.
The history of Vezelay goes back to at least 2000 BC but we won’t go back this far. In fact, we’ll only go back to the 9th century!
So in the 9th century, as it was a common practice, monks from the Benedictine order were given land to build a new abbey.
If you have trouble understanding how giving land could have been a common practice or if you need more details on the different Roman catholic orders, there are quick “refresher course” in the articles on the Maulbronn Monastery and on the Fontenay Abbey.
The Benedictine monks built an abbey on the remains of a Roman villa and 2 convents which had been previously destroyed by invaders. By 879, the new church they built, was consecrated.
Their abbey happened to be on one of the 4 majors routes leading to Santiago de Compostela and so it continued to grow, to accommodate the pilgrims on their journey.
At this point, I could say something like: you won’t believe what happened next…. 😉
The Power of Sainthood
What happened next? Late in the 9th century, a monk brought back the relics of Mary Magdalene to Vezelay!
The exact history isn’t clear. These remains might have been found by a monk named Baudillon, in Saint Maximin in Provence. There is a story about a sarcophagus which was proclaimed to be Mary Magdalene. It doesn’t really matter because a papal letter, from 1050, confirmed the authenticity of the relics.
And this is where lies the power of Sainthood! From this papal confirmation on, donations and pilgrims poured in Vezelay and enabled the construction of one of the biggest Romanesque basilica ever built!
Construction of the basilica started in 1096 and the basilica was dedicated to Mary Magdalene, in 1104. The basilica wasn’t finished, it takes a bit more time to build such a grandiose edifice, a couple decades when all goes well. We’ll skip…
Thanks to the relics of Mary Magdalene, the Vezelay Basilica shined for quite a wile, well over a century actually!
But in 1280, the Dominicans of St. Maximin in Provence decided to take back what was theirs! They claimed that the true body of Mary Magdalene was in their church and was intact. This meant that the relic held in Vezelay were fake! What a blow! From there, pilgrimage to Vezelay declined.
In other words, the story goes like this
A guy brings a bone and says it is sacred. Everybody says “whoa!“. Some may say “are you sure” to which the pope says “yes, I’m sure“. So everyone wants to see the bone, of course! But then another guy says “no it’s fake, because I have the whole sacred bone” and everybody is like “whoa, are you sure?” “yes, I’m sure” and the new pope says “yes, I’m sure as well“. So everybody stops going to the first place and goes to the new place, to see the newly sacred bone.
Now this takes a bit of time, like decades, because there is no internet and stuff. But how powerful is this? Personally, I find it quite incredible and disturbing…
Relics in general are puzzling to me and I have a hard time with the concept as a whole. A piece of bone, a tooth, some flesh or a complete body, it doesn’t mater. I find it absolutely disturbing to want to see or worst, touch, the parts of a dead body, no matter who it might have been.
The morbid attraction to body parts of people who were proclaimed to be saints, the weird fascination that such objects hold, the belief that seeing them, praying to them or touching them will heal you or make you a better person is… creepy.
I understand the concept and I understand that it was an acceptable thing to do in former centuries. But to me this practice should be something of the past.
I know writing those lines might offend some religious people. It is just my opinion.
And you know what? The story of the relics of Vezelay doesn’t really end there, either. A couple centuries later, since no one wanted to visited Vezelay anymore partially because the relics held had been destroyed, someone brought back new relics and things picked up slightly… and continue to this day!
Fascinating details of architecture
The Vezelay Basilica is an incredibly beautiful example of Romanesque architecture. From its impressive narthex to its incredible arches, you’ll love it all.
Do note that the choir was rebuilt in Gothic style and that Violet Leduc (yes him again and again!!) added the naves flying buttresses in the 19th century.
But specifically, there are 2 things I want to point out quickly before wrapping up.
The zodiac signs on the main portal
Early on (i.e. centuries ago), the Church had banished the practice of astrology. Yet, astrology was incorporated into religious architecture as a symbol to communicate the passage of time. Why?
Because, in the 12th century astrology came back into the spotlight through astronomy & science. As such, the zodiac signs were acceptable representation of the universe & time… but only within the context of the wisdom and authority of the Church!
So, do spend time looking at the archivolt of the main portal when visiting. These zodiac representation are quite a reference.
The light at the solstices
Was it planned like this? Is it a mere coincidence? I don’t know and I’m not sure anyone knows for sure, but something quite extraordinary happens at the solstices, in the Vezelay basilica.
At the summer solstice, the light creates a dotted line in the middle of the nave and at the winter solstice, the dots are up on the pillars. Both events create an incredible atmosphere!
Google “Vezelay solstice” to see pictures. I wasn’t there for a solstice but I sure have a set date to go back!
The technical bits
The official website is: www.vezelay-visiteur.com
It is a really nice first stop to plan your visit.
The basilica is opened daily from 7AM to 8PM. You can freely visit anytime, except during services.
A book you might like about the concept of time and representation in Romanesque architecture: https://brill.com/view/book/9789004267862/B9789004267862_008.xml?crawler=true
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